The seasonal malaise started early. I’m not talking about Christmas, but the Season 5 finale of Breaking Bad on Sept. 29th.

After teaching third graders all day and having to repeatedly remind them to sit “criss cross applesauce,” I so enjoy watching TV shows that prominently feature the alphabet – as in V for Violence, L for Language, and S for Sexual Situations. I like to think of it as a yin yang kinda thing, so the end of my five-year escape to the dark side with Walter White and Jesse has me down.

I was stepping out to buy more butter for making cookies this morning when I found this card in my mailbox. It had been hand delivered by a friend who for the longest time couldn’t fathom my interest in watching Breaking Bad.

“How do you reconcile the fact that he’s a drug dealer?” she asked. I could only shrug. She has since binge watched all five seasons and had a dazed look after the finale. Whoa! What a ride!

I’d thought about posting something nostalgic as it IS Christmas, but when it’s in the 80s in SoCal, it’s so not a Love Actually scenario. In the interest of trying to view the glass of eggnog as half full…

When I was in the UK over the summer, everyone was all aflutter watching The Returned, a French series (Les Revenants), but it was only available via Channel 4. Think of it as a French Twin Peaks. I was excited to see that The Returned began airing on the Sundance Channel in October and highly recommend it.

My husband and I have also been watching Getting Onon HBO, which is based on a British series with the same name. It took me two episodes to fully embrace the show, but now it’s a must see.

That said, none of the above series feature a sidekick who can use the word “bitch” with the regularity and conviction of Jesse Pinkman. Sad face. If you’ll never look at the Periodic Table of Elements again in the same way, then here’s a holiday gift for you.